Met Mike

[Guest guest]

Dear Amma Siblings,

 

I went to Mule Creek State Prison up near Placerville, CA and met Mike

yesterday. I'm still looking for people to write to Mike in Hindi.

His parents were born and raised in Fiji and Hindi is his mother

tongue. His parents are very devoted to Hanuman. He's seeking

prayers in Hindi with English translation. Even though he spoke Hindi

at home, he had just begun learning to read and write it as University

of California, Berkeley and he wants to continue improving that.

 

He is a very warm, considerate, emotionally open young man. He has

had constant support of his mother, father and brother (who is 27,

three years younger) over the 9+ years that he has been in prison. He

still stays in contact by lettre with his advisor from college.

 

Mike has faith in the Bhagavad Gita and we are trying to get copies of

the Gita into the prison for him. Also one of the men who is a

devotee of Amma and very knowledgeable about upanishads, Gita and

Ramayana has agreed to give Mike spiritual support and is writing to

him.

 

Mike explained to me that he was an ambitious young man who always

worked, even though he did not have to do so, and went to school. He

loved parties and social life. Through these, he met some people who

were not good for him. When he was a senior, he was convicted of a

murder which he did not commit. He was convicted because he was

friendly with some unsavory characters and the prosecutor withheld

exculpatory evidence. While in prison, he found a case in the law

library that was almost exactly the same as his. He wrote a letter to

the attorney who had won the appeal for that previous case. The

attorney has agreed to handle Mike's appeal. It turns out that the

prosecutor in both cases is the same guy. Mike doesn't have a court

date yet but expects to hear a date soon.

 

We talked some about the story from the Mahabharata that precedes the

opening of the Bhagavad Gita, about the gambling game, the loss of the

kingdom to Dhritarashtra, the attempt to avoid a war by coming to a

diplomatic settlement with Krishna's help, the failure of negotiations

and the preparations for war. I told him about how Prince Arjuna and

Dhritarashtra waited at Krishna's bedside so that whoever was seen by

Krishna first could ask for and get Krishna and his army on their

side. Of course, Krishna surprised them a little by saying that his

army could go to one of them and he would go with the other but he

would not fight; he would just be charioteer. We talked about why

Arjuna was wise to choose Krishna, the nature of his spiritual crisis

ad his important request Krishna: "Tell me what is the best." Tell me

what is shreyas.

 

Just as the Mahabharats war the just battle in front of Prince Arjuna,

Mike's appeal is also the just battle that is in front of him, which

he cannot avoid. Blessedly, he doesn't have to kill any relatives to

succeed with it.

 

Is there anybody out there who could and would write to Mike? Contact

me off list for his full name and contac